Rumors have been floating around earlier this month that Olympus will soon release a successor to the Olympus Evolt E-300. This week Olympus has confirmed it by officially announcing the new Olympus Evolt E-500, which features high performance Kodak 8 Megapixel Progressive Scan CCD image sensor for superior image quality.
The E-500 has a compact (5” x 3.7” x 2.6”), lightweight (15.3 ounces), durable body. It features Olympus innovations such as the Dust Reduction System for spot-free photos, a TruePic TURBO Image Processor for fast response time, and a large 2.5” HyperCrystal LCD. The Evolt E-500 is compatible with a wide range of Olympus Zuiko Digital Specific Lenses, which are Olympus’ very own smart lenses.
Olympus Zuiko Digital Lenses are designed so light strikes the camera’s image sensor directly, ensuring rich, accurate colors, sharp contrasts and bright images even at the edges.
Lenses that are smart, that talk with the camera about their specific optical designs and imaging information. Lenses, particularly zoom lenses have some distortion. This is true of all manufacturers. Zuiko Digital Lenses store data in the header portion of the digital file allowing for software-assisted correction of anomalies including pin cushion and barrel distortion.
Shoot wide open or stopped all the way down and achieve superior results over 35mm film based lenses. Zuiko Digital Specific Lenses are about three times the resolution of ordinary film based lenses.
Here are the main features of the Evolt E-500:
- High performance Kodak 8-Megapixel 4/3-type Full Frame Transfer Progressive Scan CCD image sensor
- Super Sonic Wave Filter for CCD dust protection
- Four-Thirds System lens mount for Zuiko Digital Specific lenses
- Program Auto, Aperture Priority, Shutter Priority, Manual and 21 Scene modes
- sRGB and Adobe RGB color space plus three color modes (Vivid, Neutral, and Muted) in each color space based on the image use/output
- JPEG, TIFF and RAW file formats
- Simultaneous capture of RAW + JPEG files
- Metering modes: 49 point ESP, Center weighted, Spot (2%), Spot High Light and Spot Shadow
- Exposure compensation ±5 steps EV in 1, 1/2 or 1/3 steps
- 3-point (selectable) TTL Auto Focus
- 2.5” HyperCrystal LCD monitor with 160° viewing angle
- Auto popup multi-mode intelligent flash
- Hot shoe for E System TTL flash units (FL20, FL36, FL50)
- Capture 2.5fps up to 4 frames in SHQ
- Capture 2.5fps in HQ or SQ up to the capacity of high speed CF card
- Auto Exposure, Flash and White Balance bracketing
- ISO range 100-400 with boost to 1600
- RGB histogram display for accurate color information per channel including overall luminance
- Next Generation TruePic Technology with advanced noise reduction
- 5-level Sharpening, Contrast and Saturation controls
- B/W and duo tone modes with four contrast-enhancing filters (Yellow, Orange, Red, and Green)
- USB connectivity and PictBridge direct-print ompatible
- xD-Picture Card and CompactFlash I/II/Microdrive storage
- High capacity Li-ion rechargeable battery and charger
- Compatible with all Olympus E-System lenses and accessories
The Olympus Evolt E-500 DSLR will be available on market in October, the suggested retail prices are US$799.99 (bundled with a 14-45mm f3.5/5.6 Zuiko Digital Zoom Lens) or $899.99 (bundled with 40-150mm f3.5/4.5 Zuiko Digital Zoom Lens). Accessories such as USB Cable, Video Cable, Li-Ion Battery Pack (BLM-1), Li-Ion Battery Charger (BCM-2), and Shoulder Strap will be included in the packages.
Link:
Full review of the Olympus Evolt E-500 at Steves Digicams
